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Rain, cold put Sauk Valley drivers on ice

Route 2 closed for a while after semi vs. snowplow accident

STERLING – Freezing rain turned roads into ice rinks in the Sauk Valley on Friday evening. It was no fun for drivers or police.

Illinois State Police Lt. John Biffany said there were dozens of accidents and hundreds of vehicles in ditches in Whiteside, Lee, Ogle and Carroll counties.

Some highways were closed in Ogle County because of the slippery conditions or because accidents made roads impassable.

State Route 2 between Dixon and Oregon became a parking lot for a while Friday evening after an accident between a semitrailer and a snowplow near Castle Rock State Park. No injuries were reported, but Ogle County Sheriff Michael Harn said traffic in both directions was backed up for a mile and a half.

Stuck in that traffic was a bus carrying the Rock Falls High School girls basketball team. Their game Friday night at Oregon was postponed.

In addition to state Route 2 being closed for a time because of the accident, state Route 64 east of Oregon was shut down because of the icy conditions. State Route 72 also was closed between Byron and Stillman Valley.

Earlier in the day, about 3,400 customers in the Morrison area were without power, ComEd reported. A number of wires were down, and traffic lights on U.S. Route 30 weren’t working. The outage started about 12:45 p.m., ComEd said.

The freezing rain was forecast to change to snow overnight, with little accumulation likely.

According to the National Weather Service, the region will be dry and warmer this weekend. Sunday’s high temperature is forecast for 41 degrees.